Barcelona rallies past Efes at home

FC Barcelona Lassa grabbed its second consecutive win by topping Anadolu Efes Istanbul 80-65 at Palau Blaugrana on Thursday. Barcelona improved to 8-7 and finished the first half of the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague Regular Season in the playoffs zone, just like Efes, which dropped to 9-6 and a share of fourth place. Barcelona trailed by as many as 17 in the first half, but dominated the second 41-15 to snatch the victory. Pierre Oriola led the winners with 14 points, Chris Singleton and Kevin Seraphin each added 13 and Adam Hanga scored 10 for Barcelona. Brock Motum paced Efes with 13 points and Vasilije Micic had 11 in defeat.

Singleton struck from downtown and Hanga added a fast break slam, but Rodrigue Beaubois quickly tied the game at 5-5. James Anderson and Pau Ribas joined the three-point shootout and so did Micic and Adrien Moerman to put Efes ahead, 10-16. Beaubois hit another triple off a Barcelona timeout and Micic scored in penetration, but Hanga highhandedly kept Barcelona within 19-21. Singleton dunked off a steal, but Shane Larkin and Motum did better with respective three-pointers. A turnaround jumper by Motum fixed the score at 23-29 after 10 minutes. Larkin hit a jumper and Motum added a floater for a 24-33 Efes margin early in the second quarter. A jumper by Micic and a dunk by Dunston caused the hosts to stop the game at 25-37. Motum capped a 2-18 run with a bomb from downtown that made it a 17-point game. Oriola had 5 points in a 7-0 run that Micic stopped with his second triple. Motum scored again and a three-pointer by Singleton prompted Efes to call timeout at 37-48. Close baskets by Anderson and Singleton fixed the halftime score at 39-50. Victor Claver downed a three-pointer soon after the break and consecutive layups by Oriola brought Barcelona back in the game, 46-50, after a 7-0 run. Larkin scored in penetration, but a red-hot Oriola did better with a triple and Claver added a layup. A big basket by Seraphin completed the hosts' comeback, 56-55. Ribas buried a stop-and-pop jumper and a dunk by Tibor Pleiss brought Efes within 59-57 after 30 minutes. Seraphin hit a jump hook and Kevin Pangos added a triple for a 5-point Barcelona margin. Thomas Heurtel took over with a coast-to-coast layup, fed Seraphin for a huge dunk and buried a three-pointer that made it a double-digit game, 71-61. By the time Seraphin beat the shot clock with a jump hook, the game appeared in hand as the Barcelona fans began celebrating their team's come-from-behind win with time to spare.

Pivotal performer

Oriola had a key role in Barcelona's comeback, leading an early second-half run that put Barcelona on the right track. He finished the game with 14 points on excellent shooting: 3 of 5 two-point shots, 2 of 2 three-pointers, 2 of 3 free throws – and 4 rebounds in 18 minutes.

Game-changing moment

Efes led 37-50 near halftime but Barcelona only allowed 4 points in the next eight minutes. Meanwhile, Oriola, Ribas and Claver led a 16-3 run that tied the game, 53-53. Once the game was balanced, Barcelona kept its momentum going to win the game.

Stellar stat

Barcelona's defense made the difference in the second half. Efes shot 11 of 18 on two-pointers (61.1%) and 9 of 16 on threes (56.3%), had 13 assists and 50 points in the first half. It was limited to just 5 of 12 two-point shots (41.7%), 0 of 13 from downtown (0%), 15 points and 5 assists after the break.

Did you notice?

Six different Efes players struck from beyond the arc in the first quarter - Beaubois, Larkin, Motum, Micic, Anderson and Moerman. However, no Efes player hit a three-point shot in the entire second half. Efes made 7 of its first 8 attempts from downtown and just 2 of the next 21.

Head Coaches

PESIC, SVETISLAV

FC Barcelona Lassa

"Congratulations to my players and thanks to our fans for their support. If you play defense like we did in the second half, everything is possible. I cannot forget our last game in the EuroLeague, in April, in Istanbul, when we played against Efes. After the game, Coach Ataman said that he had seen Golden State that night (Barcelona won 83-107). He meant that about the way we played and how we won by 20-25 points. Tonight, Efes started in the first half, especially in the first 10 minutes, like Golden State. This is no surprise for us because we knew before the game who Efes is, with Fenerbahce, the best offensive team at the moment in the EuroLeague. They average 59% on two-point shots and 45% three-point shots. This is really good offense. It is very difficult to compete with a great talent and a team that is in a good moment, but we showed that we can play and compete. This is why it is more than one victory; we reacted together with our fans in the second half and beat them. We played great defense in the second half. Everyone that knows basketball thinks that we changed everything in the second half. We changed little things, but most important, changed our mentality. Each of our players took responsibilities and this is what makes me happy. You can win or lose, but it is important how you win games."

ATAMAN, ERGIN

Anadolu Efes Istanbul

"We played two different games. In the first half, we played perfect. We started the game perfect, with perfect offense and aggressiveness on defense and we got a big advantage. Also, in the first half, we got a 17-point advantage but at the beginning of the second half, we started to miss all shots, inside, layups, three-point shots. Then we gave Barcelona the chance to come back to the game. So our first half was perfect and the second was a disaster for us. We scored only 15 points in the second half and this is unacceptable. Until now, we showed good character, but tonight, especially in the last quarter, I am very upset with the character that we showed. We gave up on the game. Barcelona played a physical game and we had a problem attacking their switches in man-to-man defense. It is normal, the team that is down 11 points at halftime has a reaction, but we didn't answer well to their physical game and missed everything, especially in the third quarter, then in the fourth quarter we gave up on the game."

Players

ORIOLA, PIERRE

FC Barcelona Lassa

"I think we came back after halftime with more energy. We were more aggressive on defense and were able to run. When we do these things, we are a great team, an amazing team, and we can beat any opponent."

SERAPHIN, KEVIN

FC Barcelona Lassa

"It was a very good game, a very physical game. It is a team that is always gonna rebound and I think we won the rebounding battle. And I think it was our defense that made the difference. In the second half, we started with Pierre Oriola and we were switching everything and playing physical and making sure we protect the paint. And we got the win. It is important, because we had a stretch where we lost a few games in a row, which is not good for your confidence. But we got a win in Baskonia to get that confidence back, and we managed to win tonight to prove it."

MICIC, VASILIJE

Anadolu Efes Istanbul

"It was not a great game for us. We started very well and played a great first half. In the second half, we didn't manage our offense well against their switching defense and unfortunately, we lost an important game. We have to turn to our next game and be ready to win at home."